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2003 AMC 12B Problem 20

Problem 20 of 25HarderAlgebra

Part of the graph of f(x)=ax3+bx2+cx+df(x) = ax^3 + bx^2 + cx + d is shown. What is b?b?

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Solution

The graph passes through (−1,0),(-1, 0), (1,0),(1, 0), and (0,2).(0, 2). So f(0)=d=2.f(0) = d = 2. Adding f(1)+f(−1)=(a+b+c+d)+(−a+b−c+d)=2b+2d=0, \begin{aligned} &f(1) + f(-1) \\ &= (a + b + c + d) \\ &\quad {}+ (-a + b - c + d) \\ &= 2b + 2d = 0, \end{aligned} so b=−d=−2.b = -d = -2. Thus, the correct answer is B.
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Tagged: polynomial · substitution

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